Man booked for employing minor boy as child labour

Thane: A brick kiln owner at a village in Kalyan taluka of the district was booked for allegedly employing a minor boy as a child labour and harassing him, police said today.

Atmaram Jadhav, owner of a brick kiln, had loaned an amount of Rs 4,000 to the victim’s father Ramesh Mukne, a native of Sawroli village in Bhiwandi, four years ago on a condition that till Mukne repays the amount, he will have to employ his 14-year-old son Ravi to work as a labourer, they said.

According to complaint filed by the boy’s uncle with Bhiwandi police yesterday, he employed Ravi as a ‘bonded labour’ and not only made him do all sorts of works at the site but also harassed him by not giving him food and beat him on several occasions, investigating officer at Padgha police station S R Suryavanshi said.

The boy somehow managed to escape from clutches of Jadhav and ran away to his home in Bhiwandi, following which a case was filed.

Police said a case has been registered under relevant sections of Bonded Labour Act and it has been transferred to Kalyan police, the jurisdiction under which the alleged incident took place.